Department of Geography and Planning

Education

Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2015

Research

My current research focuses on the spatiotemporal patterns of environmental health illnesses and how these patterns relate to environmental, socioeconomic, and climatic determinants. This research is guided by the social-ecological approach of vulnerability theory, which investigates the complex interplay between the environmental and social/economic aspects of a community. Using this theory, my research provides insights into the etiology of environmental-health diseases, highlighting both at risk populations and the environmental conditions that lead to adverse health outcomes. Presently, I have three main topical research interests: 1.) Environmental Exposure and Wearable Sensor Technology 2.) Mental Distress among Adolescents 3.) Indicators of Vulnerability and Resilience in the southeastern US

Personal Webpage

Teaching

The goal of my teaching is to create an environment that facilitates student interaction and encourages critical evaluation of the world.

Recent Courses:

• GHY3812: Geographic Information Systems
• GHY5800: Advanced Quantitative Methods for Graduate Students
• GHY4005: Geography of Health and Disease
• GHY5150: Seminar in GIScience
• GHY5025: Climate and Society

Publications

Runkle, JR, Michael, K, Stevens, S., and Sugg, M.M. (2019). Quasi-Experimental Evaluation of Textbased Crisis Patterns in Youth following Hurricane Florence in the Carolinas, 2018. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (Under Review)

Wilson, M, Lane, S, Mohan, R., and Sugg, M.M. (2019). Internal and External Validation of Vulnerability Indices: A Case Study of the Multivariate Nursing Home Vulnerability Index. Natural Hazards. (Under Review) 

Sugg, M.M., Fuhrmann, C.M, and J.D. Runkle. (2019). Perceptions and experiences of outdoor occupational workers using digital devices for geospatial biometeorological monitoring. International Journal of Biometeorology (Revisions Ongoing) 

Bailey, E., Fuhrmann, C., Runkle, J, Stevens, S, Brown, M., and Sugg, M.M. (2019). Wearable Sensors for Personal Temperature Exposure Assessments: A Comparative Study. Environmental Research (Revisions Ongoing) 

Sugg, M.M., Michael, K. Stevens, S. Filbin, B., Weiser, J., and Runkle, J. (2019). Crisis Events in Youth following Celebrity Suicides and the Release of 13 Reasons Why Season 2: A Case Study of Summer 2018. Preventative Medicine Reports (Revisions Submitted)

Osborne, Z., S. van de Gevel, M. Eck, and Sugg, M.M. (2019). An Assessment of Geospatial Technology Integration in K-12 Education. Journal of Geography, https://doi.org/10.1080/00221341.2019.1640271

 Runkle, J.R., Cui, C., Fuhrmann. C.M., Stevens, S, Del Pinal, J. and Sugg, M.M. (2019)  Evaluation of Wearable Sensors for Physiologic Monitoring of Individually Experienced Temperatures in Outdoor Workers in Southeastern U.S. Environmental International, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.05.026

Thompson, K., Sugg, M. M., and Barth, M. (2019). The North Carolina Food Pantry Organizational Capability and Mapping Study. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 9(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2019.091.031 

Sugg, M.M., Stevens, S. S., & Runkle, J. D. (2019). Estimating Personal Ambient Temperature in Moderately Cold Environments for Occupationally Exposed Populations. Environmental Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2019.03.066 

Andersen, L.M., and M.M. Sugg (2019). Geographic Multi-Criteria Evaluation and Validation: A Case Study of Wildfire Vulnerability in Western North Carolina, USA Following the 2016 Wildfires. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2019.101123

Sugg, M.M., P. Grady Dixon, and J. Runkle (2019). Crisis Support-Seeking Behavior and Temperature in the United States: Is there an Association in Young Adults and Adolescents? Science of the Total Environment. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.02.434

Wilson, M., M.M. Sugg, and S. Lane (2019). Identifying Multivariate Vulnerability of Nursing Home Facilities throughout the Southeastern United States. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2019.101106

Thompson, L.C., Michael, K., Runkle, J.R., and M.M. Sugg. (2019). Crisis Text Line Use Following the Release of Netflix Series 13 Reasons Why Season 1: Time Series Analysis of Help-Seeking Behavior in Youth. Preventative Medicine Reports, 100825.

Sugg, M.M., Fuhrmann, C.M, and Runkle, J.R. (2019) Geospatial Approaches to Measuring Personal Heat Exposure and Related Health Effects in Urban Settings (book chapter) in Geospatial Technologies for Urban Health, Eds. Delmelle, E. & Yongmei, L. (Accepted)

Runkle, J.R., Sugg, M.M., Boase, D., Galvin, and S., Coulson, C. (2019) Use of Wearable Sensors for Pregnancy Health and Environmental Monitoring: Descriptive Findings From the Perspective of Patients and Providers. Digital Health. https://doi.org/10.1177/2055207619828220

Andersen, L.M., Bonevac, A.N., Thompson, L.K., Dempsey, K.E., Shay, E.D., & Sugg, M.M. (2019). Understanding Key Informant Experiences and Perceptions of the 2016 Drought and Wildfires in Western North Carolina, USA. Weather, Climate, and Society, https://doi.org/10.1175/WCAS-D-18-0061.1

Thompson, L.C., Sugg, M.M., Runkle, J.R. (2018) Adolescents in Crisis: A Geographic Exploration of Help-Seeking Behavior Using Data from Crisis Text Line, Social & Scientific Medicine, 215, 69-79.

Sugg, M.M., (2018). Heat-Health Vulnerability in North Carolina. North Carolina Medical Journal , 79:320-321; doi:10.18043/ncm.79.5.320

Sugg, M.M., Fuhrmann, C.M., & Runkle, J.D. (2018). Temporal and spatial variation in personal ambient temperatures for outdoor populations in the southeastern USA. International Journal of Biometeorology, 1-14.

Thompson, L.C., Sugg, M.M., and Runkle, J.D. (2018). Report-Back for Geo-referenced Environmental Data: A Case Study on Personal Monitoring of Temperature in Outdoor Workers. Geospatial Health, 13 (1).

Fuhrmann, C.M., Sugg, M.M., and Konrad, C.E. (2016). Airborne Pollen Characteristics and the Influence of Temperature and Precipitation in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (1999-2012). Aerobiologia. 32 (4), 683-696.

Sugg, M.M., Konrad C.E., and Fuhrmann, C.M. (2016). Relationships between Maximum Temperature and Heat-Related Illness across North Carolina, USA. International Journal of Biometeorology, 1-13. DOI 10.1007/s00484-015-1060-4

Fuhrmann, C.M., Sugg, M.M., Konrad, C.E., and Waller, A. (2016). Impact of Extreme Heat Events on Emergency Department Visits in North Carolina (2007 to 2011). Journal of Community Health, 1-11. DOI: 10.1007/s10900-015-0080-7

Kovach, M.M., Konrad C.E., and Fuhrmann, C.M. (2015). Area-level Risk Factors for Heat-Related Illness in Rural and Urban Locations across North Carolina, USA. Applied Geography , 60, 175-183. DOI: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.03.012

Kovach, M.M., and C.E. Konrad (2014). The Spatial Distribution of Tornadoes and High Wind Impacts Associated with Inland-Moving Tropical Cyclones in the Southeastern United States. Physical Geography , 35, 245-271. DOI:10.1080/02723646.2014.909231

Fuhrmann, C.M., Konrad, C.E., Kovach, M.M., McLeod, J.T., Schmitz, W.G., and Dixon, P.G. (2014). Ranking of Tornado Outbreaks across the United States and their Climatological Characteristics. Weather and Forecasting , 29, 684-701. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/WAF-D-13-00128.1

Fuhrmann, C.M., Konrad C.E., Kovach, M.M., Perkins, D.J. (2011). The August 2007 Heat Wave in North Carolina: Meteorological Factors and Local Variability. Physical Geography , 32, 217-240. DOI:10.2747/0272-3646.32.3.217

Recent Master Theses Supervised

Elizabeth Bailey - Wearable Sensors For Personal Temperature Exposure Assessments: A Comparative Study (2019)

Matthew Wilson - External Validation Of Vulnerability Indices: A Case Study Of The Multivariate Nursing Home Vulnerability Index (2019)

Lauren Andersen - An Assessment Of Wildfire Vulnerability In Western North Carolina, USA Following The 2016 Wildfires (2018)

Laura Thompson - Adolescents In Crisis: A Geographic Exploration Of Help-Seeking Behavior Using Data From Crisis Text Line (2018)

Garry Raynor - Geographic Variations Of Clandestine Methamphetamine Laboratories In North Carolina (2017)

Anna Ross - Recreational Heat-Related Illness: Heat Exposure Outside The Work Week (2016)